McCown completed 18 of 28 passes for 216 yards. He also tossed an interception.

The Saints defense settled down after a shaky start.

Kansas City drove 15 plays 80 yards on the opening drive. Jamaal Charles scored from the 1 for a 7-0 lead.

The Chiefs led 10-0 and had scored the last 31 points against the Saints in the Superdome counting last September’s New Orleans collapse. But, head coach Sean Payton was absent, suspended for the season for his alleged role in the Bounty case.

Payton was cheered loudly as he was introduced at the Superdome Friday night. It was his first game on the sideline since the Saints lost to the 49ers in the NFC divisional playoffs in January 2011.

“We made some mistakes, including have 10 men on the field. We have to clean that up,” said Payton. “But this is just the beginning of the preseason, not even the middle.”

Free agent Khiry Robinson led Saints rushers with 12 carries for 52 yards. 13 different Saints caught passes, including Nick Toon who led New Orleans with 4 catches for 66 yards.